Heat transfer element



B. SPIETH HEAT TRANSFER ELEMENT- Filed Nov. 1'7, v1948 IVI/6a' July I24,1951 Patented `Iuly 24, 1951 HEAT TRANSFER ELEMENT .Benjamin Spieth,Racine, Wis., assignor to Modine Manufacturing Company, Racine, Wis., acorporation of Wisconsin Application November 17, 1948, Serial No.60,569

2 Claims.

This invention relates to a heating system and in particular, to a heattransfer element especially designed for use in a system knowncommercially as a one pipe steam system.

costly of installation.

through the same pipe.

ance.

a system is more costly.

member may be employed.

may be reduced to a minimum.

appended claims.

on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

A steam heating system, the type or design 5 with its interior through aport 8 in the tubular known as a one pipe system, is probably the leastwall of the steam inlet header. complicated and hence is more economicalin walls 6a bonded or otherwise secured to the tubu-l installation. Asthe name implies, only one cirlar wall close the ends of the header.cuit of pipe from the boiler to the heat transfer A partition 9 weldedor otherwise secured to elementis requiredthatis. itis a one pipesystem- 10 the tubular wali of the header divides the latter InCDmpaIiSOn the CGIIVeIltOn/l System has lQWO into g, Steam inlet ChamberI0 and an air and pipes, that is, two pipe circuits and hence is morecondensate Chamber chamber I 0 leads a substantially horizontally ex- Inthe one pipe system Steam OWS fIOm the tending tube or several tubes I2which are bondboiler out to the heat transfer element, iS C011- ed orotherwise secured to the partition 9. Bonddensed. and the condensatereturns to the boiler ed or otherwise secured to the tubular wan of lConsequently, Steam iS the header and leading from the air and conlOWrlgin 011e direction in the pipe and the COD- densate chamber Il, is a tubeor tubes I3 of densate water is flowing in the opposite direction.greater diameter than the tubes l2 and surround.. This condition,together with the fact that there ing said tubes I2.

is usually air in Such a system, heretofore has length than the tubes I2and having their ends resulted in erratic, faulty and ineiiicientperformopposite the header, closed by closures I4 bonded or otherwisesecured to the tubes I3. When the The tWO pipe System usually gVeS mOIedefinite present heat transfer element is applied to a conand efficientperformance Since the Steam and vection heater, fins or heat radiatingplates I5 condensate travel in the same direction, but such are Strungalong the tubes I3` and are bonded or otherwise secured thereto.

The invention has, among its objects, the DIO- the air and condensatechamber II through a duction of a heat transfer element that will elim-vnipple ls is a thermostatic air valve |1 having 9, inate the aboveObjections. which iS very simple 3o discharge port ls through which airis released in Construction, efficient in Operation, and in from theheat transfer element, and extending Which a Single llOIiZOIltallyextending header down from the air and condensate chamber is a trap orwater seal I9 which is bonded to or other- Another object of theinvention is the producwise secured to the tubular wall of the header 6.tion of such an element in which substantially all The trap extends downinto the extension I or the elements may be in the form 0f Stamlillgs itmay be of a length to extend down into the or theklike and bonded in asingle operation into steam supply pipe 5, if such a high head of wateran integral unit. whereby cost of manufacture is required to direct thesteam in its proper course.

One leg I9a of the trap is somewhat shorter than vOther objects andadvantages will appear in the other leg. the course of thisspecification and with said ob- The heat transfer element may besupported jects and advantages in view, this invention conin aconvection heater cabinet in any suitable sists in the several novelfeatures hereinafter fully manner. The supporting means here shown setforth and more particularly defined in the comprises a bracket 2D bondedor otherwise secured to the tubular wall of the header and hav- Theinvention is clearly illustrated in the drawing an upright web 20a'bolted or otherwise seing accompanying this specification in which:cured to one end wall 2| of the convection heater Fig. 1 is a plan,partly broken away and partly cabinet. The closed ends of tubes I3extend broken out, of aheat transfer element embodying through avertical web of a second bracket 22 a simple form of the presentinvention. And and are bonded or otherwise secured thereto and Fig. 2 isa vertical longitudinal section taken said bracket 22 has anupright web23 which is bolted or otherwise fastened to an end wall 24 of Referringto said drawing which is merely ilthe convection heater cabinet.lustrative of one embodiment of the present in- The several parts of theheat transfer element with the exception of the thermostatic air valvevention, the reference character 5 designates a' steam supply pipe and 6designates the tubular Wallof a steam inlet header connected to the pipeby a chambered extension 1. In the formof the invention illustrated, thesteam inlet header is of horizontal tubular form from which theextension 'I extends downward, and communicates Heads or end From thesteam inlet The tubes I3 are of greater Communicating with are firstassembled with their surfaces coated with bonding material, and theassembly is placed in a suitable oven and heat of sufficient temperatureis applied to the assembly to fuse the bonding material, so that whencooled an integral structure is produced.

In operation steam enters the extension I through the steam pipe 5 andflows through the port 8 into the steam inlet chamber I. From thechamber I the steam enters the tube or tubes I2 and ows to their farends forcing any air that may be in the tubes I2 ahead of it. Since thetubes I2 have little or no contact with the outer tubes I3, little or nocondensation of steam will occur in the tubes I2.

As the steam leaves the outer ends of the tubes I2 and enters tubes I3the outer tube Walls, and the f ns absorb heat and condensation of thesteam occurs. The ow of steam, air and con"- densate between the tubeWalls is all in one and the same direction and toward the airand con-`densation. chamber II. In chamber' II they air separates. from thecondensa-te and rises intoy thermostatie air valveI I'IJ and isdischarged through port It.

. The condensatev drops down through chamber III: and into the trap Ia,where it overflowsl from the shorter leg back into the steam pipe i anddrains: back to? the-boiler. Thus the flow the mixture out steam., airand'` waterin the heat trans ier: element is always in the samedirection, and satisiactory performance results.

When: thesteam is rst turned on after a periodv oi' inoperation, thewater in the short leg inlay be depressed with a corresponding rise ofthe Water in the longer leg', providing the pressure head causing the:circulation to be in the right direc tion..

Under somewhat unusual conditions, the pressure headimay be insufficientto cause proper flow ofthe steam, and condensate. In such cases the.-watertrap may have lon-ger relative length than shown, even extendingbelow the nomi-nal lower limiti oi chamber l, and reaching down into thepipe. 5.

awarev that attemptsv have heretofore been; made to employ a heatingunit in a one steam. system, one example of which is the heat'- ing'unit. disclosed in the patent to W'. Ehrlich, No: iii-,956363, dated'October 6, lg3d, but that uni-t employs a cumbersome cored casting in'which the air and condensate are separated. Furthermore, arnenifoldf is'required to connect the tubes dis-- closed at different levels.

My heat transfer element does not require core castingnor a mai-iiioldf,as the-parts may be constructed of light gauge material' bondedtogether., and.' the" steam conveyed' from the steam inletv chamber, bya tube or tubes extendinginto tubes of larger diameter and dischargingtheree Y into, where the steam condenses and flows back toI nl air andcondensate chamber from which it disclarges through a trap back into thesteam supply pipe. r

Having thus described my invention, it" is ob vious that variousimmaterial modifications beV made the same without departing from thespirit oi my invention; hence, I' do not wishv to be understoodv aslimiting myself to the exact form, construction, arrangement' and'combination of parts'fllerein shown and described or uses mentioned.

lWhat 'i claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

li. A heat transie ele-ment forI a single pipe steam 1m, comprising incombination a header member, a partition wall positioned in said memberand dividing the same into a steam inlet chamber and an adjacent air andcondensate chamber, an extension positioned below said header member andarranged to be connected to a steam pipe, anA air ventingvalveoperatively communicating with said airi and condensate chamber, asubstantially horizontal steam tube endof said trap member communicatingwith thev air and condensate chamber, the lower end of said trap memberhaving an outlet opening communieating with said' extension, saidopening beingY pesiti'cned above the bottom ofthe trap'v member', withthe portion of the latter below said open-v ingI being operativeto-coliect condensate: therein opposing the entrance oiV steam throughsaid trap member' into the air andV condensateA chamber. f

2. A heat transfer element for asingle pipe-v stier-rm-v systenr,comprising in Combination a hea-diei' havin-ga partition thereindividing the san-1c "nto a steam in-letchamber' and anl air and cui.ensate chamber; an air venting valve operatively communicating with saidlast mentioned. chamber', both chambers being of' substantially the samelengt-h as the header, al substantially llcriaontal' steam tubeconnected to' said partition and communicating with the steam inletchamber., :said steam tube extending through the, condensate' charfrber,a'tube of larger diameter than the rst mentioned tube" surroundingtlfrel same and con'- nested' to an outer wall of and communicating withsaid air and condensate chamber, said` tube greater diameter beingclosed at vits end op..

Q posite the header, fins strung' along the outer tube" thereto, adownwardly extending extension carried by said header communicating withsaid inlet chamber and adapted to be connested to a steam supply pipe,anda tubular trap member extending down from the-header'into saidv'extension and' communicating with the air and condensate chamber, thefree end of said trap member: having a U-bend. therein, with the freeopen end of said trap member being positi'or'iedv above saidI bend. andcommunicating with thel extension interior, said bend being operative.to co1- lect condensate therein to opposev the passage of steam tl'noughsaid trap member into. the condensate chamber;

REFERENCES .CITED The following references: areiof record in.l the fileof patent:

STATES? PATENTS Number- Name Date 2,041,282 Brooks May 19,1936aces-,25eehnicn oct. 6, 1936 2,337,097'l Funtan Aug.. 29,1944' 23573155wiison- Aug. 29, 1944 2,423,697' Garnele July 8 194i,

